Modern electronic equipment is sensitive to power disturbances on the power grid. Protection systems designed to isolate electronic devices from such disturbances are often used to protect sensitive electronic devices. While such systems work well for grid disturbances, they do not otherwise address the underlying cause of such disturbances, many of which may be local to a location and not caused by a failure external to the location.
The problems caused by these disturbances are widespread and multifaceted. Entire organizations, e.g., maintenance and repair shops, exist largely because of them. Organizations affected by power disturbances suffer lost revenue, repair costs, and maintenance overhead. Common issues include premature equipment failure, induced errors, revenue loss, and truck rolls.
With respect to premature equipment failure, the resulting damage from repeated exposure to these disturbances wears out and damages the component parts of the electronic equipment. These parts need to be replaced, typically by trained and experienced technicians, at considerable expense. Most modern electronic equipment is made of multiple components that need to operate in a reliable, synchronized manner. If one or more of the components fails to do so, the typical result is an error code and the temporary or permanent unavailability of the equipment. This, in turn, leads to down time in an organization and lost revenue.
Finally, a truck roll occurs when a technician has to be dispatched to the equipment in order to diagnose and address the issue. Often the technician is encountered with mysterious ‘No Fault Found’ error codes. The fix typically is something as simple as a power cycle (momentarily cutting the power to the equipment) and allowing the device to reboot. However, the cost of the technician's time and associated overhead (truck, fuel, maintenance, dispatch, et.) can easily exceed several hundred dollars. Furthermore, if there is a systemic grid problem within a location, it may be very difficult, if not impossible, for the service technician to identify and diagnose.
Finally, the systems described above are often reactive in that they take protective measures after detection or commensurate with the detection of a fault, such as a voltage sag or current inrush, and are not designed to anticipate the need for taking a protective measure before a fault condition occurs.
Accordingly, there is a need for proactive protection processes and systems that in addition to protecting equipment from disturbances, utilizes historical data to detect one or more of systemic topology problems, anticipate equipment failure, and adjust protection schemes on a per-device basis.